ESCONDIDO: Mercado leaders lobby for parking, restaurant row

Leaders of Escondido's Mercado district, who contend the area
could become similar to Old Town San Diego, have begun lobbying
local business leaders and city officials for a large parking lot
and some help fostering a restaurant row in the district's southern
portion.

They also want the Cruisin' Grand classic car shows and the
twice-per-year downtown street fairs to be extended far enough west
to include the Mercado, an 11-acre neighborhood sandwiched between
downtown and Interstate 15.

Focus on the Mercado's future has increased since a $2.2 million
upgrade of the district's northern section was completed last
month. Grand Avenue between Quince Street and Centre City Parkway
now features palm trees, urn fountains, several wooden benches,
colored concrete and landscaped medians.

"It went from the worst street to the best street in the whole
town, and we want the same energy to continue into Mercado Sur,"
Mercado Business Association Chairwoman Maria Bowman told leaders
of the Escondido Chamber of Commerce during a Thursday luncheon.
"We are asking for your support and for help getting the city
behind us."

Bowman, who was speaking to the chamber's economic development
committee, said the city owns five pieces of property in the
Mercado and four other properties are for sale, creating an
opportunity for a large parking lot.

"We desperately need public parking and there's nothing
planned," said Bowman, suggesting that four parcels west of Second
Avenue and Pine Street would be ideal.

City Manager Clay Phillips, who didn't attend the luncheon, said
he was open-minded about the proposal. But he also noted that it
would be unusual for the city to create a parking lot in an area
where parking is not yet scarce.

Bowman said she'd also like help from the city in creating a
restaurant row on Quince Street, Second Avenue and Third Avenue,
noting that the Mercado already has three large restaurants:
Jalapeno Grill, Mi Guadalajara and Island Hut Grille. She said the
city could help with property, zoning or incentives.

Mayor Sam Abed, who owns property in the Mercado, said he
supported the restaurant-row concept. But Abed said Bowman should
find another name to avoid direct competition with Old California
Restaurant Row in San Marcos.

Councilwoman Marie Waldron, who owns a T-shirt shop downtown,
said she was upbeat about plans for the Mercado and the restaurant
row. She said a more appealing Mercado would encourage people
entering the city from I-15 to visit local businesses in the
Mercado and downtown.

"It wouldn't compete with downtown," Waldron said. "It could all
work together cohesively."

Waldron said the recent success of new restaurants, such as BJ's
Restaurant and Brewhouse and Mike's BBQ, shows there is enough
demand for more restaurants in the Mercado.

Bowman said the biggest hurdle facing her proposal to extend
Cruisin' Grand and the street fairs into the Mercado is Centre City
Parkway, explaining that the width of the street and its large
median serve as a sort of barrier between downtown and the
Mercado.

The economic development committee didn't vote on the Mercado
proposal, but members mostly had positive comments.